Vehicle window regulators

ABSTRACT

928,895. Vehicle window regulators. WILMOT-BREEDEN Ltd. June 19, 1961 [June 18, 1960], No. 21503/60. Class 20 (3). Opening and closing mechanism for a vertically sliding and vertically curved vehicle window 1 comprises a window support channel 9 in which slides a ball-ended lifting stud 17 attached to the end of a lifting arm 7 which is pivotally mounted on an axis B-B inclined to the longitudinal axis C-C of the window and is attached to a toothed segment 12 driven by a pinion 13 mounted on a manually rotatable shaft 14. The toothed edge of the segment 12 is dished so that its teeth lie in a plane normal to the axis D-D of the drive shaft 14. The weight of the window is counterbalanced by a spring 25 which is connected between a back plate 5 and the segment and surrounds the pivot axis of the segment and arm 7.

Dec. 7, 1965 N. s. Moss 3,222,050

VEHICLE WINDOW REGULATORS Filed June 19, 1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 AT-roemav Dec. 7, 1965 N. 5. Moss VEHICLE WINDOW REGULATORS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 19, 1961 Mus/v70? Wow/11v J/o/vi Moss i- .-FLIHPEE MWAW n- Ln lli ll lE Dec. 7, 1965 N. 5. Moss VEHICLE wmnow REGULATORS Filed June 19, 1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 m 7 w w w Nam/M f/m/fr Mar United States Patent 3,222,056 VEHICLE WHNDOW REGULATORS Norman Sidney Moss, Shirley, Solihull, England, assignor to Wilmot-Breeden Limited, Birmingham, England Filed June 19, 1961, Ser. No. 117,967 Claims priority, application Great Britain, June 18, 1966, 21,503/60 1 Claim. (Cl. 268-426) This invention relates to vehicle window regulators of the type in which a window raising arm is pivotally mounted about a fixed axis and is formed adjacent one end spaced from that axis for movement along a supporting channel fitted to the bottom edge of the window.

Window regulators of this general character have previously been used with fiat windows and the pivotal axis of the arm at right angles to the plane of the window so that the locus of the one end lies in that plane, and the object of the invention is to provide a novel form of window regulator suitable for use with a curved window, or with a flat window to lower the bottom edge of the latter along a path curved in a plane at right angles to that of the window.

According to the invention a vehicle window regulator has a window raising arm which is formed adjacent one end for movement along a supporting channel or the like fitted to the bottom of the window and which is pivotally mounted about an axis which, when the regulator is fitted, is inclined at less than a right angle to the longitudinal axis of the window. The term longitudinal axis as used herein with reference to the window refers to an axis joining the side edges of the window at right angles to the direction of raising of the latter.

With a regulator in accordance with the invention the end of the arm normally has, as is usual, a lifting stud or the like for engagement with the supporting channel along which the stud tracks in the usual manner. The stud traverses an arcuate locus lying in a plane at right angles to the pivot axis of the arm, and the inclination of this pivot axis and the effective length of the arm are preferably chosen so that the window channel always intersects this locus as the window is raised or lowered.

The lifting stud may be of conventional form with two opposed generally frusto-conical surfaces springloaded towards each other to provide a peripheral groove within which side edges of the window channel are received, and in this case the surfaces are preferably slightly radiused to allow self-aligning movement of the stud within the channel. Alternatively, the lifting stud may have a single rounded surface positioned within the channel in engagement with the side walls of the latter, this surface being formed on the head of the stud which is urged resiliently outwards from the channel. The rounded surface may be formed on a ball end of the lifting stud.

The invention is very conveniently utilized with a hand-operated regulator having a toothed segment fixed to or formed integrally with the arm and engaged by a pinion which can be turned by an internal window winding handle. In order that the operating shaft to which the handle is fixed can project from the inner panel of the corresponding door at right angles thereto the rotational axis of the pinion is preferably inclined to the pivot axis of the arm. To accommodate this and improve meshing of the teeth of the segment and pinion the former may be dished around the toothed edge so that the segment teeth lie in a plane normal to the pinion axis.

The invention will now be further described with reference to the accompanying drawings which illustrates, by way of example, a vehicle window regulator representing one embodiment of the invention and two minor detail modifications thereof, and in which:

FIGURE 1 is a view of the regulator from inside a vehicle door in which it is mounted, with the inner door panel removed,

FIGURE 2 is a vertical sectional view of the door structure, to the right of the window and regulator as shown in FIGURE 1,

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary sectional view through the door structure on the line III-III in FIGURE 1, and

FIGURES 4 and 5 are detail section views of the two minor modifications.

The door incorporates a sliding window 1 which is curved in the vertical direction so as to be outwardly convex and slides in corresponding curved side guides 2. The center line of the window in side view is shown at AA in FIGURE 2.

The regulator is mounted between the inner and outer door panels 3 and 4 below the window aperture and comprises a backplate 5 cranked for mounting by means of bolts such as 6 to the inner door panel 3 slightly to one side of the window 1. A window raising arm 7 of pressed metal form is pivotally mounted on the backplate 5 about an axis BB inclined relatively to the longitudinal axis of the window inwardly and to the side away from the window 1, as shown in FIGURE 3. In that figure a typical longitudinal center line of the window is shown at CC.

At one end below the window 1 the arm 7 carries at its outer side a ball-ended lifting stud 8 engaging a window support channel 9. At its other end the arm 7 has riveted thereto by rivets such as 10 a toothed segment 12 in driven engagement with a toothed pinion 13 of manual window operating means. These means have an operating shaft 14 which projects through the inner door panel 3 for the attachment of a window winding handle (not shown), and they incorporate a coil-spring clutch 15 of normal design which locks the regulator when a winding torque is not applied to the shaft 14. When a torque is applied to the shaft 14 it is automatically freed by the clutch 15 and drives the pinion 13. As shown in FIGURE 3 the backplate 5 is pressed out at 16 to form an outrigger bearing for the shaft 14 and a shroud for the pinion 13.

As is usual the shaft 14 and pinion 13 have a common axis DD normal to the inner door panel 3, so that this axis is inclined to the pivot axis BB of the arm 7 and segment 12. In order to improve meshing of the teeth of the segment 12 and pinion 13 the toothed edge of the segment 12 is dished (as shown in FIGURE 3) so that the teeth thereof lie in a plane normal to the pinion axis DD.

The ball end 17 of the stud 8 allows self-aligning movement of the latter within the channel 9 to occur smoothly during movement of the window. The necessity for such self-aligning movement will be clear when the path of movement of the center 18 of the ball end 17 is described hereinafter. FIGURES 4 and 5 are detail cross-sectional views through alternative forms of lifting stud 8 which also allow the self-aligning movement in a convenient manner.

The lifting stud 8 of FIGURE 4 is of more conventional form with two opposed generally frusto-conical surfaces respectively formed on a head 19 of the stud 8 and an annular ring spring-loaded towards each other by a spring 22 to provide a peripheral groove in which the edges of the window channel 9, which is of suitable shape, are received. Instead of being exactly frustoconical, as is usual, there surfaces are slightly radiuse-d to provide the self-aligning action as the inclination of the axis of the stud 8 relatively to the channel 9 varies as the window is raised. In the arrangement of FIGURE the stud 8 has a head 23 formed with only a rear surface engaging a similarly shaped window channel 9, this surface being rounded and engaging the side walls of the channel 9. A spring-loaded ball 24 in the stud 8 engages the base of the channel 53 to urge the aforesaid stud surface outwardly into engagement with the side walls.

Reverting to FIGURES l to 3, a spiral torsion spring 25 has its ends respectively connected to the backplate 5 and the segment 12 and surrounds the pivot axis 8-8 of the latter, this spring serving to counterbalance the Weight of the window 1.

In operation the centre 18 of the lifting stud 8 follows an arcuate path X centred on the pivot axis BB of the arm 7 and lying in a plane EE (see FIGURE 3) inclined to the longitudinal axis of the window 1. As a result, the path X has a curved component in a plane normal to the longitudinal axis, i.e., in a plane parallel to that of FIGURE 2, the elfective length of the arm 7 and the inclination of the pivot axis B-B being chosen so that this component follows the path of the lower edge of the window 1 as the latter is lowered and raised. This path corresponds to the centre line A-A of the window shown in FIGURE 2. In each of FIGURES l to 3 the lifting stud 8 is shown in the central position, the upper and lower limit positions of the centre 18 being respectively 18a and 18b. It will be seen that the lifting stud centre 18 accurately tracks with respect to the window 1 and consequential tilting of the stud axis relatively to the channel 9 is accommodated in the manner described.

In the figures the upper and lower limit positions of the channel 9 are indicated at 9a and 9b respectively, and as shown when fully lowered the channel 9 bottoms on a resilient pad 26. This is attached to a pressed stud bracket 27 attached to the inner panel 3 by screws such as 28.

As can be seen from FIGURES 1 and 3 the distance spanned by the track X lengthwise of the window, i.e., laterally of FIGURE 1, is reatively small and hence the section of the channel 9 engaged by the stud 8 is only short. The U-shaped upper section 29 of the channel 9 in which the window 1 is supported is much longer, and in fact is substantially equal in length to the window.

A reinforcing plate 34) is clamped between the backplate 5 and the panel 3 by the bolts 6 to strengthen the panel 3 in the region of attachment of the regulator. This plate 3% is pressed outwardly at 31, where it projects inwardly of the door through the panel 3, in order to provide a second bearing for the operating shaft 14.

In certain cases, though not in the arrangement described, it may be necessary for the axis DD of the winding shaft 14 and the pivot axis BB to be relatively skewed and hence not coplaner, in order to allow the shaft 1 to be normal to the door panel 3. In this case the teeth of the pinion 13 and segment 12 may be suitably formed for correct engagement in addition to dishing the toothed edge of the segment 12 as already described.

I claim:

In a vehicle having a window and guide means for guiding vertical movement of the window along a path that is curved in a vertical direction and is inwardly concave and outwardly convex, a window raising arm connected to the window, means mounting the window raising arm for vertical swinging movement about an axis fixed relative to said guide means in an inwardly inclined relationship to the longitudinal axis of the window and inclined at an angle less than a right angle with the longitudinal axis of the window as viewed in plan, said mounting means including means for restricting movement of said arm remote from said fixed axis to a path that is curved in a vertical direction and is inwardly concave and outwardly convex as viewed in the direction of said longitudinal axis.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,736,703 11/1929 Fauser et al. 268l26 2,616,688 11/1952 Floraday 268l26 2,798,761 7/1957 Himka.

HARRISON R. MOSELEY, Primary Examiner.

JOSEPH D. BEIN, BENJAMIN BENDETT, Examiners. 

